he phone rang at 4 a.m. Bill Clinton, like millions of other Americans, turned on the TV. Princess Diana's funeral procession was about to begin. The president hardly moved for three hours.
Did he cry? ''Yeah, Elton John,'' Clinton said later, referring to singer Elton John's rewritten version of ''Candle In the Wind.''
''That's my favorite Elton John song,'' he explained while visiting the Black Dog Cafe in Vineyard Haven for lunch with his daughter, Chelsea. ''You know, Marilyn Monroe was 36 when she died, too.''
Clinton said he was especially pleased that the funeral had been piped into Hyde Park and other London settings, so that millions of people could share in the moment.
The president's feelings about the deaths of Diana and Mother Teresa, ''two women of vastly different backgrounds and worlds,'' dominated his weekly radio address.
''Each of them in her own way has shown us what it is to live a life of meaning through concern for others,'' Clinton said. ''That is the great legacy they leave us. Let us honor it. For whether we live to a ripe old age or must leave this life too soon, our time on earth is short, and we live on only through the gifts we give to others who share the journey with us.''
Winding down his stay
Clinton delivered the address before a crowd of island residents in the library of the Edgartown School, and he began his comments by thanking Martha's Vineyard for its hospitality.
''We've enjoyed both the natural splendor of this wonderful place and the natural warmth that the people of this community, some of whom are with us here today, have shown,'' he told listeners across the country.
Later, while strolling around Vineyard Haven, Clinton was asked if he had enjoyed his stay. ''Wish it went on another three weeks,'' he said.
Vineyarders leaving Clinton's radio address said they felt honored that the president chose to summer with them in three of his five years in office, and would welcome him back. Clinton returns to Washington this morning.
Kevin Ryan, head of the Edgartown School Parent-Teacher Organization, said, ''I appreciate the fact that the Clintons try very hard not to be intrusive of the island and its community.''
Added teacher Tom Durawa, ''It's an honor that he should come to Martha's Vineyard. And he's certainly good for the economy.''
Island's new direction
Ater three presidential visits, during which the Clintons were feted by such summer luminaries as Vernon Jordan, Katharine Graham and Walter Cronkite, Martha's Vineyard seems to have acquired an identity: Home of the Eastern Establishment.
How do island natives, for whom Martha's Vineyard will always be a garden of Indian lore and seafaring tradition, feel? A brief survey of island natives turned up a surprising answer: They don't much care.
''I think its kind of fun, myself,'' said Christine Larsen of the island's reputation as a refuge for the powerful. The Larsens, one of the oldest Vineyard families, operate a popular fish store in Menemsha, from which they sell T-shirts and bumper stickers to tourists.
Matt Poole, a fisherman with his own store, said natives long ago accepted that tourism, not fishing, would be the island's image. And most natives rely on a flow of visitors for their livelihoods. ''It doesn't bother me who comes,'' said Poole.
Up to par
As Clinton winds up his vacation here, we'd like to offer a word about Farm Neck Golf Club: splendid.
There is little doubt in any local golfer's mind that the beauty and even majesty of Farm Neck is as big a draw for Clinton as the literary, Hollywood, and musical stars who populate Martha's Vineyard throughout the summer.
There is a gentle, easy flow to the club, from the golf course to the pro shop to the cafe, which offers some of the best homemade cookies around. On Friday, waiting for the president to arrive, Vernon Jordan padded around the clubhouse with an unlit cigar in his mouth, casually asking one of the assistant pros: ''What's the difference between a 90 and 100 compression golf ball?''
The course can be difficult, but not long, with many of the holes bordered by water or high marsh grass that seem to offer an almost magnetic attraction to golf balls. From the white tees, which Clinton plays, the course measures 6,128 yards.
There are no exclusionary policies here, no cutesy country club names for each of the holes, like ''Homeward Bound'' or ''Big Oak.'' Rather, the public is invited to spend $75 for a round of golf, and the holes are regally identified on signs that read, ''The First,'' ''The Second,'' and so forth.
The views from ''The Third'' and ''The Fourth'' are nothing short of stunning, out over a salt pond toward the ocean. ''The Eighth,'' a par 5 reachable in two shots, is cut alongside a rocky beach from tee to green. The 14th green sits on a windy point splashed by the sea.
When Clinton played, which he did often, the course would clear out two holes ahead of him and two behind, but the rest of the club would be filled with golfers. Typically, Clinton teed off in the early afternoon and played until dusk, often fitting in extra holes after his round. By the vacation's end, he is said to have begun wearing a knee brace, which helped his swing tremendously.
A mini-ace
Farm Neck wasn't Clinton's only golf destination. Friday night, after attending a party for the news media and a select group of local residents, Clinton dashed off to Island Cove Mini Golf in Vineyard Haven, where he cooled his heels taking practice putts and standing in the small clubhouse eating an ice cream cone until Chelsea arrived 35 minutes later. Only a daughter could keep the president waiting.
On the course, Clinton played an orange ball, Chelsea a blue one. ''I made a hole-in-one before you came out,'' he told her. ''I was practicing.''
They played a practice hole in front of the news media, each taking a three, tapping in each other's ball. They began anew when reporters and photographers were guided away from the course.
After golf, while Hillary Rodham Clinton was flying to London for Princess Diana's funeral, Clinton and Chelsea headed to Edgartown for dinner at David Ryan's Restaurant, where Chelsea had a grilled vegetable salad and Clinton ordered red pepper hummus, a cup of clam chowder and penne with marinara sauce and chicken.
On their way out, the two ran into a wedding party in front of the Tuscany Inn. ''You look beautiful,'' Clinton told the bride. To the couple, he added, ''I love your outfits.''
